PhraseExpress Network Edition - Manual

Document conventions

Introduction

System requirements

Software Installation

Server Configuration

Workstation Configuration

Miscellaneous notes

Data backup

Phrase file encryption

Keep PhraseExpress up-to-date

Uninstallation

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Document Conventions

• Bold, italic type in this documentation indicate either a procedure or menu items
• Filenames are printed in italic letters

This symbol indicates an important note or useful hint

Introduction

The PhraseExpress Network Edition allows using a central phrase file by multiple users in a network.

The new PhraseExpress Server manages read/write rights for each client installation and allows to configure the workstations centrally. The administrator can restrict access to program settings for individual users.

The PhraseExpress Network Edition consist of three different programs. Following scheme shows a typical installation:

Explaination

PhraseExpress component	Purpose	Notes
Server	Provides access to the central phrase file	The Server is running as a Windows Service on any computer which is networked to all workstation PCs.
Client Manager	Configures the Server Manages the Read/Write rigths of each individual workstation client Manages the license keys	The Client Manager ist a single program file which can be executed from any computer which has access to the Server PC. The Client Manager does not need access to the individual workstations.
Workstation installations	Provides the PhraseExpress functionality	The workstation installation is identical to the regular single-user version. The only difference is the setting of the phrase file location to the Server PC IP Adresse

System requirements

PhraseExpress Server:

• Windows NT4/2000/XP/2003
• TCP/IP connection to all workstations

Client Manager:

• Windows NT4/2000/XP/2003
• Network connection to the computer where the PhraseExpress Server service is running
• Internet connection for the license key authorization

Installation procedure

1. Install the PhraseExpress Server on the Server PC. This PC does not need to have a Windows Server operating system. It can be any regular computer which has network access to all desired workstations.
2. If you already have a v3 phrase file (by default, it is named phrases.px3), copy this .px3 file onto the Server PC. The Server PC must have local access to the .px3 phrase file.
3. Install and launch the Client Manager on any computer which has network access to the Server PC and grant PhraseExpress access to the network when a firewall warning pops up
4. Copy the list of purchased license keys into the corresponding input field of the Client Manager
5. If the Client Manager is not running on the Server PC, enter the computer name of the Server PC in the Client Manager
6. Install the regular PhraseExpress software without entering any license key on all desired workstation PCs

After launching the PhraseExpress client on the workstation, it is searching for the Server via UDP Port 1036 and automatically connects to the first PhraseExpress Server found.

You can also manually enter the Server PC address if no server is found: Select Properties Tab Settings Files, click the Network button and enter the Server PC's IP address.

Please make sure that you have enabled the networking support on the client installations. If in doubt, reinstall the clients and carefully set the option when being asked during the installation procedure

Server configuration

The PhraseExpress Server is launched upon start of the Server PC. Windows applications running as a service generally do not have a user interface and are running invisible in the background.

You configure the PhraseExpress Server using the Client Manager.In the Client Manager you define all desired settings and then send the parameters to the Server service by clicking the Update button. All clients will be temporarily disconnected and reconnected for a very short time when changes take effect on the Server service. While the clients are disconnected, they cannot make any changes to the phrase file.

Server Tab

In the Server tab of the Client Manager you define basic communication settings:

If you run the Client Manager on the same computer as the Server service then just keep the "." (without "") as the Server location. Otherwise enter the name of the computer where the PhraseExpress Server is running.

Here, you can define the TCP port which is used for the communication between the PhraseExpress Server and the workstation installations. Normally, you do not need to change this setting . Only, if the default TCP port is already occupied by another application in your network, the Client Manager will display an error and you would need change to another port.

Avoid using ports which are well-known to be used by other software (e.g. any port below 1025)

You may need to configure the firewalls on all workstations when changing the TCP port

The Server event log is stored in the same directory where the Server service is running. You may need the event log to troubleshoot problems. You can safely switch it off if everything works fine.

Phrase file tab

Here you can enter the phrase file location on the Server PC harddisk. The phrase file must reside locally on the Server PC.

If you have a phrase file of the previous version 2, please convert to the new v3 format first. You can do that with any PhraseExpress workstation installation (Refer to Chapter "Import/Export")

Optionally, the server can create a backup of the phrase file on every change of the phrase file. the backup file is located in the same directory as the orginal phrase file.

You can also decide whether any change of the phrase file shall be instantly updated on all workstations. If disabled, phrase file changes will take effect upon the next launch of the PhraseExpress client program on the workstation.

This option takes only affect on workstation with read-only rights to the phrase file. Clients with write access are always updated

Monitor tab

In the Monitor tab, all status information and connected workstations are displayed:

You can set write access rights ("W") for individual users or remove the menu option to access the configuration ("C") on the workstation installations. You can also change this settings for all users simultaneously by (un)ticking the check box in the title row and confiming with the Set button.

If you try to remove write access from a user who is currently editing phrases, you will receive a warning message. Please avoid removing write access while a user is working on the phrase file as it may confuse the user.

License keys tab

Please copy&paste all purchased license keys using the Windows clipboard and click the Update button. An internet connection is required as the license keys are validated online.

The amount of license keys define the amount of workstation PCs which can simultaneously access the PhraseExpress Server. You can add additional license keys to the list at any time. You can also delete license keys from the list but please be aware that workstations exceeding the maximum available license keys will be disconnected.

Workstation Configuration

For the client installation, the only difference between the Standard-/Pro and Network-Edition is the phrase file's location. Once, the PhraseExpress client finds the Server PC or if you manually enter the IP address of the Server PC, PhraseExpress enters the Network Edition mode and the program window title changes to "PhraseExpress Network":

There is no license key input required on the workstation installation

The networking function can be disabled by launching the PhraseExpress client with the command line parameter -local

Miscellaneous notes

• If the workstation installation looses access to the Server PC, the user can continue to use PhraseExpress in read-only mode but cannot alter or create new phrases until the connection is re-established.
• If certain users have no write access to the phrase file, all menu entries to create or alter phrases are automatically removed.
• If certain users are not allowed to access the configuration, such menu entries are removed. This can be set by the administrator in the Client Manager.
• If multiple users have write access rights and if one user is currently editing a phrase, all other users temporarily have no access to functions to alter phrases until the editing process is finalized.
• Depending on the PhraseExpress Server configurations, changes to the phrase file may either be transmitted to all clients instantly or upon the next program launch on the workstation.

Data backup

PhraseExpress automatically creates a backup of the phrase file each time you save changes to the phrase file. The backup file is located in the same folder as the main phrase file and has the file extension .bak. Changes to the phrase file are saved to the phrase file whenever you close the program or when you click the OK button in the setting window.

The Backup-file is a copy of the original phrase file before the changes are made.

If you would like to discard accidental changes to your phrase file of if the original phrase file cannot be read anymore, please do the following:

1. Close PhraseExpress
2. Delete the current phrase file with the file extension .px3 or move it to another folder
3. Remove the file extension .bak of the backup file. It should then have the .px3 extension
4. Launch PhraseExpress again and the backup file will now be used as the new main phrase file. A new backup file will automatically created when you save any changes to your phrase file

Phrase file encryption

We have not implemented an encryption function directly into PhraseExpress as we do not need to invent the wheel twice.

Windows 2000/XP already includes the feature of encrypted folders. Just move your phrase file to such encrypted folder. Further information can be found on the Microsoft web page 'How To Encrypt a File in Windows XP'

Keeping PhraseExpress up-to-date

We continuously improve PhraseExpress and you can keep the program up-to-date with the built-in internet update check.

To check manually for updates, connect your computer to the internet and in the Client Manager select the tab Online Updates Check now

If the menu item is missing, please contact your system administrator, who may have disabled the option to avoid operating errors

The online update feature on the client installations is deactivated they are connected to the PhraseExpress Server of the Network Edition

Uninstallation

PhraseExpress can be uninstalled via Start Programs PhraseExpress Server Uninstall PhraseExpress Server

Please note that for data security reasons, the phrase file is not deleted when uninstalling the PhraseExpress Server. You can safely delete this file manually if you do not need your phrase file anymore.